


These Halcyon Days

by swallowed_stars



Series: Sheith Family Series [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Eventual family cuddle time, Keith also flusters the everloving heck outta Shiro, Kid Fic, M/M, Mpreg, Spoilers they're happy and good dads, family fic, fluff abound, fluff as far as the eye can see
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-29
Packaged: 2018-11-13 12:08:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11184816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swallowed_stars/pseuds/swallowed_stars
Summary: Everyone in the Shirogane family is excited for the new baby to arrive, some in different ways than others.Another little continuation of my family series.





	1. Chapter 1

Keith sighs contentedly, raking a hand through Haru’s hair as Haru nestles against Keith’s stretched belly.

 

“I miss her.” Haru says softly.

 

Keith chuckles and looks down at his son with a raised brow.

 

“You haven’t met her yet.” Keith points out.

 

Haru looks up at Keith and reasserts himself: “I know, but I _miss_ her.”

 

The child inside Keith gives a sharp little kick, and Keith inhales quickly from the impact. Keith always considered Haru to be pretty active when Keith was pregnant with him, but he was nothing in comparison to his sister. She’s hardly given him a moment’s rest in the past month, especially when Haru cuddles up to her. Still, it warms Keith’s heart to think that his unborn daughter already has an attachment to her older brother. Until his time with the Paladins, Keith never knew the bond that siblings could share, and he’s glad that he can change that experience for Haru.

 

Keith gently draws his son’s cheek back against his belly as the baby continues moving.

 

“I think she misses you too.” Keith says.

 

“I can’t wait till she’s here.” Haru says. It’s practically been his mantra for the past eight months, but its significance to Keith hasn’t ebbed.

 

Before he and Shiro committed to trying for another baby, it was important to Keith that they made sure it was okay with Haru. However, not only was Haru okay with having a sibling, he was ecstatic. It added up the longer Keith considered it: Haru spent the first few years of his life living among several other people on a spaceship, so the switch to a place in which he only lived with his two dads was unquestionably hard for him. In the end, it only solidified the decision to make Haru an older brother.

 

Keith grunts as the baby delivers another swift kick that sets just beneath his ribs. She’s precise like that.

 

“Yeah, Keith groans, “I can’t wait either.”

 

The sound of the doorknob being twisted breaks out and Shiro walks in, beaming as Haru perks up and looks over the side of the couch to greet him.

 

“Hi, Papa.” Haru says cheerfully.

 

“Hey, kiddo. Did you have a good day at school?” Shiro says as he disentangles his satchel from over his shoulder.

 

Haru hums and nods his head fervently. He adds: “I also came home as fast as I could to check on Daddy for you, like you asked.”

 

This earns Shiro a look from Keith that is both piqued and provoked. Shiro can only smile timidly back at him, shrugging.

 

“Haru, would you mind if I talked to your dad alone for a minute?” Shiro says.

 

“Okay.” Haru says. He places his hand on Keith’s belly as he slides off the couch and says: “Bye, Kira.”

 

Haru scampers upstairs to his room and Shiro takes it as an opportunity to lower himself next to Keith, who tries his hardest to sit up while navigating around his bump. Shiro takes a gentle hold on Keith’s arm and pulls him up the rest of the way, pressing a kiss to Keith’s temple for added effect.

 

Shiro’s prosthetic hand then drifts down to Keith’s bump and lingers there. He can’t exactly feel the warmth emanating from Keith’s belly, but he can feel his daughter kick against his palm. That little flutter alone dispels all the stress from his workday.

 

“You feeling okay?” Shiro says airily.

 

“I’m okay. That is, okay enough that you don’t have to send our son to look after me. I don’t exactly go far these days.” Keith says and he puts his hand atop Shiro’s, rubbing both of them against the curve of his belly.

 

Shiro shrinks back out of embarrassment. In a small tone, he admits:

 

“I just don’t like having to be away from you all day, especially when you’re so close.”

 

Keith scrunches his nose as he mutters: “Not close enough.”

 

“Only a few weeks.” Shiro offers.

 

“My statement still stands.” Keith says.

 

“Hey, by the way, Mom wanted to know if she could stop by and see you tomorrow.” Shiro says, backtracking from their little tangent.  

 

“Sending your mother to monitor me now too?” Keith says sarcastically.

 

“Completely her idea, I promise I had nothing to do with it.” Shiro says, crossing his heart like the dopey boy scout he is.

 

“I always have time for her.” Keith says. He’s grown to love Shiro’s mother so much in the years they’ve been back on Earth. She’s present in their lives, but she’s careful not to hover. Keith wouldn’t exactly know the difference considering no parental figure ever doted on him, but with how grumpy he’s gotten now that he’s passed the eight month mark, he’s glad that Shiro’s mother is respectable about boundaries. The last thing he wants to do is alienate anyone in this family because of his hormones.

 

Keith catches Shiro staring at him, as he’s been apt to do since Keith’s gotten pregnant again. Shiro looks at him when he thinks Keith doesn’t notice, an incredulous gleam in his eye and a gooey smile plastered to his face. His eyes wander from Keith’s face down to the swell of his abdomen and it makes Keith feel sheepish to realize. Even if he does manage to suppress that voice in his head that says he isn’t deserving of Shiro’s affections, he’ll probably always get rosy-cheeked at them.

 

Shiro rises from his place on the couch and offers Keith his flesh hand. As taxing as the simple act of moving has become, Keith also hates sitting in the same spot for too long. He lets Shiro tug him, though Keith loses his balance and almost eats a mouthful of Shiro’s clothed shoulder.

 

“Sorry! I shouldn’t have gone so quickly.” Shiro says, counterbalancing Keith and helping him stand properly via their connected hands. Shiro’s free hand comes to rest on Keith’s hip to steady him.

 

“It’s not your fault I’m so top heavy.” Keith grumbles.

 

“Actually, it kind of is.”

 

“Right. You jerk.”

 

“You married this jerk.”

 

Keith rocks onto the tips of his toes and brings a hand against the back of Shiro’s head to angle it downward. Accommodating to his expanding belly has been annoying when trying to get intimate, but Keith’s finally got it down pretty well. Their lips collide, and Shiro enforces the connection by planting both hands against the slant of Keith’s widened hips and shifting them forward.

 

Keith grinds against him bump first, which causes him to laugh into the kiss, but he thoroughly appreciates Shiro’s enthusiasm. He winds his arms around Shiro’s neck and severs the connection so that he can gently drag Shiro’s bottom lip with his teeth.

 

“Lucky me.” Keith breathes against Shiro’s mouth. Hungrily, Shiro tries to rush at Keith to capture him again, but Keith steps back.

 

“Don’t you think you’re being unfair?” Shiro says with a very pitiful pout.

 

Keith can’t help smirking at him. He says, “Don’t _you_ have exams to grade?”

 

Shiro sighs and his shoulders sag, but Keith’s resolve is strong.

 

“Go be responsible.”

 

“But I just got home and I wanna spend time with-“

 

“-The baby will still be here when you’re done. I’ll call you if that changes.”

 

Shiro mumbles something to himself and turns to grab his satchel from the foyer. He then dutifully heads upstairs to the room where he keeps his desk.

 

“I don’t know, kid. It’s hard to tell, but I think he likes you.” Keith says, massaging circles against his belly.

 

\----

 

Shiro’s latched onto him, one hand wound around Keith’s waist and the other fiddling with Keith’s wedding ring, which Keith now has to keep on a chain courtesy of his swollen hands. Shiro’s metallic fingers create a sound like a wind chime as he toys with Keith’s necklace, a cheery little tempo of metal clicking together. It’s so soothing that Keith’s practically lulled to sleep right then and there. However, Shiro leans over, resting his head in the junction between Keith’s neck and shoulder, pressing a kiss there. The light stubble Shiro’s grown over the past week scratches Keith in that sandpaper kind of way, but Keith loves how it both looks and feels on Shiro.

 

“Hi, handsome.” Shiro coos, and Keith snorts in response, wriggling against Shiro.

 

“You’d better not fall asleep holding me like this; I gotta get up every couple of hours now.”

 

Shiro nods in acceptance. He then says, “I’m sorry you’re so uncomfortable.”

 

Keith reaches back, caressing Shiro’s forelock. In turn, Shiro brushes his knuckles against the firmament of Keith’s belly.

 

“I just want her to be here.” Keith whispers. Suddenly he’s awash with frustrating memories, recalling the better part of a year in which they couldn’t get pregnant again after trying nonstop. It’s a relief to be able to juxtapose it with the large mound of his abdomen now, but he’s not going to consider everything said and done until they’ve brought their daughter home.

 

“Me too,” Shiro says, “but she needs more time. She’s not done baking, as Haru says.”

 

“Baking?”

 

“Pretty sure he overheard Lance congratulating me on putting a bun in your oven.”

 

“Alright so first thing’s first, we get this kid out of me and then I go murder Lance.”

 

Shiro laughs and says, “That’s just him being happy for us in his own way.”

 

Keith shakes his head and says, “Not sure if I prefer his way or yours.”

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Shiro, your reaction to me getting pregnant again was telling almost everyone you’ve come in contact with. I’m surprised I wasn’t getting collect calls from the Balmerans.”

 

Keith feels Shiro burrow his head deeper into the crook of Keith’s neck. Shiro’s cheeks are hot against his bare skin.

 

“I didn’t tell _that_ many people.” Shiro mumbles, though the guilt in his tone betrays him completely.

 

“In the span of a day, you told your mom, your twin brother, our friends, all of your students, and the clerk at the supermarket.”

 

“Yeah, but…it’s different this time.”

 

“What’s different this time?”

 

Shiro responds by gently flipping Keith onto his back, Keith huffing in response as his weight shifts. Keith blinks up at him confusedly and Shiro smiles down at him, pushing the hair from Keith’s eyes.

 

“Everything’s different this time. I don’t have to worry about whether you’re safe or about whether I’ll be able to come back to you alive. Plus, everything had to be a secret with Haru, from your pregnancy to his existence. Until we brought him home to Earth, we couldn’t take our son anywhere, we couldn’t talk about him to people, and it hurt me, because I love him _so_ much. Now we don’t have to deal with any of that. We can have a normal life together.”

 

Keith flicks his thumb against the tail of Shiro’s eye when a tear threatens to fall from it.

 

“I’m just as happy for all those reasons, you know. I’m glad everything is safe for us and our family.” Keith says.

 

Shiro’s hand slips from Keith’s forehead to his face, stroking delicately against his cheekbone.

 

“Although, if you’re already crying over this, you’re gonna bawl when Kira’s born.” Keith adds.

 

“Oh, you think so?” Shiro scoffs.

 

“I know so.”

 

“Would you bet on it?”

 

“Kind of unfair making a one-sided bet, Shiro. You’re going to cry, I know it.”

 

“We’ll see about that.”

 

“I guess we will.”

 

With that, Shiro dips down and kisses Keith’s bump, Keith observing him in admiration all the while. Despite Shiro being a tad clingy and overbearing during this whole process, Keith understands. They’ve both waited a long time for this.

 

“I should let you two sleep.” Shiro says.

 

“Yes, please.” Keith concedes. He makes sure to drape Shiro’s arm around him again, though not too tightly.

 

\----

 

Shiro’s mother walks in, hands outstretched to direct Keith’s cheek closer to her as she leans up to kiss him. Keith welcomes her, circling an arm around her tiny form.

 

“Hello, sweetheart.” She chirps at him, and he stands aside to allow her to enter.

 

“Hi, Hana.”

 

She turns and purses her lips at him, no doubt deciding whether or not it’s worth chiding him for not referring to her as “Mom”. Clearly she elects to let it slide, as her expression goes soft.

 

“How are you feeling?” She asks as he closes the door behind him.

 

“Huge.” Keith replies, rubbing at the base of his neck.

 

Hana snickers at him and says, “Try having both at once.”

 

“No, thanks.”

 

“We should get you off your feet. Let’s sit down.”

 

Hana sits beside Keith on the couch, taking his hands in her own and giving them a comforting squeeze. Her smile is kind and friendly, and though she has small webs of wrinkles at the edge of either eye, Keith swears she looks more full of life every time he sees her. It’s painful to remember how she looked so sallow upon their first meeting due to her mourning Shiro. For years, the supposed loss of her son corroded her. However, once they returned home, they set that right, announced their marital status, and introduced her to her grandson all within the same afternoon. In all honesty, Keith was glad they didn’t give her a heart attack.

 

“I half-expected Ryou to be here.” Keith says and he has to bite back a laugh when Hana rolls her eyes at him.

 

“Ryou seems to think I’m incapable of so much as looking at a car, but he got called in to perform a surgery this morning, so here I am.” Hana punctuates this by turning her head up proudly, as if Ryou is there to witness her defiance. It’s a hilarious offset to how prim and doll-like she is.

 

Hana relinquishes her hold on Keith’s hands and reaches behind her, producing a small purple bag and presenting it to Keith. Keith stares at her in surprise but takes the gift all the same. When Hana nods at him, signaling for him to open it, he pulls out a couple miniature pairs of shoes, a dress, three hair bows…

 

“I hope I didn’t go overboard, it’s just that I never had girls. And she’s part Takashi, who grew out of everything every couple of weeks, so…”

 

Keith stretches over and brings her into a slightly awkward side-hug, but she meets him halfway and finishes the job. It’s nice having someone who can empathize with the graceless physicality that comes with pregnancy.

 

“They’re adorable, Hana. Thank you.”

 

Hana tucks a strand of her short black hair behind her ear as she pulls back. She looks at Keith almost deviously as she says:

 

“Is Takashi making you nuts yet?”

 

Keith contemplates that for a moment, chewing his lip before saying:

 

“I’ve gotten used to it.”

 

“So that’s a yes, then.” Hana says. She adds: “My husband was the same, always worried.”

 

“Exactly. He’s almost worse than when I was having Haru, and that was in space in the middle of a war.” Keith says, but only after it’s too late does he realize he probably shouldn’t have mentioned the dangerous space war angle. It isn’t that Hana isn’t aware of it, but she doesn’t need the reminder either. There’s a brief flash of ache in her eyes, but it just as soon fades away.

 

“You make him so happy, and you brought him back to me. I’m not sure how I can ever thank you for that.” She says, and Keith is mentally imploring her not to cry because at this stage, he knows he’ll be joining her.

 

“Hana, I _love_ him. He’s my family—all of you are my family now; you don’t have to thank me for that.” The more he says it, the more Keith starts to believe it. This is his family and he’s worked hard for it. He’ll never understand why he was abandoned before, but that doesn’t matter to him now. He isn’t alone anymore and he never will be again.

 

Hana quickly dabs at her eyes with the back of her hand and it takes nearly all of Keith’s stamina not to follow suit.

 

“Here I am making this about me when you’re the one having a baby.” Hana says.

 

“It’s kind of a nice departure from having everything about me all the time.” Keith says, rubbing his belly for emphasis.

 

“You look wonderful, by the way. I can’t believe you’re only a few weeks away.”

 

“I never took you as the lying type, Hana.”

 

“There are many sides to me. But I wouldn’t lie to you, promise.”

 

“Only to Ryou, then?”

 

“It’s not lying if you’re sneaking out to see your son-in-law and grandbaby.”

 

“Yeah, I’m pretty sure that’s how it goes.”

 

“I love you, sweetheart.”

 

“Love you too…Mom.”

 

\----

 

Keith has been here before; he knows to expect the terrible cramps, the heartburn, the swelling, the mood alterations, and the incessant discomfort. He knows how to deal with Shiro being far too attentive and Haru a bit too eager. He handles it all in stride, save for a couple of meltdowns and one afternoon wherein he locks himself in the bedroom and sleeps the day away. However, he isn’t prepared for when he goes past his due date; that’s where it all unravels.

 

With Haru, Keith had no concept of time. Everything was measured differently while in space, so he really couldn’t determine the various stages he reached until he reached them. Now that he’s on Earth with precise assessments for his pregnancy milestones, he’s no longer sure which he’d prefer, because he’s a week overdue and he’s ready to _murder_ someone.

 

Even Shiro knows to keep his distance. He walks into the bedroom slowly, lifting his hands like he’s caught in the midst of a holdup. Keith wants to feel guilty about it, especially considering he snapped at Shiro for breathing the wrong way around him the day before, but he’s tired. He’s tired of being unable to see his feet, he’s tired of people touching him, he’s tired of being in pain, and he’s tired of being unable to sleep through the night. If Shiro so much as utters one word of “patience yields…”, he’s getting an earful from Keith.

 

“I’m just grabbing something and I’ll be right out, promise.” Shiro says.

 

Keith doesn’t even move from his position. He’s sprawled out on the bed, sighing down at his belly. He’s been cramping all morning, little pangs flaring up throughout his body, but he doesn’t let that delude him into thinking it’s time. Cramps have been rather predominant for him lately.

 

“I’ve fought in an intergalactic war, I’ve dismantled an entire empire, I’ve gone back and graduated to be an ace pilot at the Garrison, and yet here I am, bested by an unborn, six-pound human.” Keith murmurs in irritation.

 

Shiro gives him a sympathetic half-smile. He says, “Anything I can do to help?”

 

“Not unless you can induce my labor. Oh, wait!”

 

“What?”

 

Keith has to use both hands to push himself until he’s sitting erect, but he looks stoic as he tells Shiro:

 

“Fuck me.”

 

“Uh…what?”

 

“It might help induce my labor, plus it’s been forever. Have sex with me.”

 

Shiro blooms scarlet, spreading from his face and down the length of his neck. He opens his mouth, endeavoring to locate the right words.

 

“A-are you sure that we should, um…”

 

Keith deadpans and says, “Shiro, we’ve had sex pregnant before.”

 

Shiro clears his throat and tugs at his collar.

 

“Yeah, but that was different then. You weren’t-“

 

“-Then what exactly is the problem? You’d better choose your words carefully.”

 

“There’s no _problem_ , I just don’t want to, you know, hurt anything.”

 

“Shiro, my stomach’s hard as a rock. You’re not going to hurt me.”

 

“Well maybe, but…”

 

“Shirooo, c’mon, you owe me.”

 

Shiro bites his lip. He knows his entire thought process is childish, but he’s every bit as anxious as Keith is for the baby to come, and he doesn’t want to disrupt anything. But then again, Keith is going through this because of him. He ought to do his part, whatever that may be.

 

“Okay.” Shiro says as he approaches Keith. His hands tremble as they work to unbutton Keith’s shirt.

 

Keith tugs at Shiro’s collar impatiently, bucking his hips against Shiro’s as Shiro clambers to not completely fall on top of him.

 

“Don’t do that, I could crush you!” Shiro gasps as he hovers over Keith, either hand placed on the bed’s edge to keep him upright.

 

“I think I’d like to see you try.” Keith purrs. His hands fly to Shiro’s collar once more and in one swift motion, he pulls Shiro onto the bed next to him and comes to sit on Shiro’s hips, straddling him.

 

Shiro’s eyes are rounded and quivering as Keith looms over him, a rather impish smirk across his lips and his dark hair framing his face. He’s gorgeous in his relentless pursuit, as ever. There’s no lie in those purple eyes of his, though there is the tiniest dilation of lust.

 

“I can do the work; you just stay focused on me.” Keith says, rolling his hips back so that his ass grazes against Shiro’s dick ever so slightly.

 

Shiro gulps, staring in awe at his husband. He’s hypnotized at the whole package of it, from Keith’s forcefulness to how incredible his pregnancy has made his body. The way his hips have waxed and his thighs have gotten a tad larger to adapt to their growing child is tantalizing. Shiro’s all but reeling as said thighs rub against his sides, Keith grinding down onto him with that same grin.

 

However, Shiro watches the smile drain from Keith’s face as something warm and wet coats Shiro’s clothed stomach. Keith then gawks down at him with concern.

 

“Babe,” Shiro says gently, running a hand through Keith’s long hair, “it’s okay. No need to be embarrassed; it’s been a long time since we-“

 

“-That was my water breaking, Shiro.”

 

“Oh.”

 

\----

 

“Has anything happened yet?” Ryou asks as he approaches his mother and nephew. He didn’t even bother changing out of his scrubs; as soon as someone could cover him, he headed straight for the waiting room.

 

“Not yet.” Hana says with a shake of her head.

 

Ryou’s attention moves to Haru, who looks rather wistful in his grandmother’s lap.

 

“You okay, bud?” He says, and Haru nods slowly.

 

“Daddy will be okay, right?” Haru says, looking to both his grandmother and his uncle for affirmation.

 

“Of course he will; it just takes awhile.” Ryou says, and when Haru doesn’t look especially convinced, he adds:

 

“I fix people; trust me on this.”

 

Haru moves to hug his uncle and Ryou bends down to meet him.

 

“I wonder what she’ll look like.” Hana says, not taking her eyes off the door to the emergency room.

 

“She’ll be a looker just like her uncle Ryou.” Ryou says coolly, to which his mother laughs.

 

“You mean she’ll take after Takashi, your twin?”

 

“Which by association means she’ll look like me.”

 

“What an important day this must be for you, Ryou.”

 

\----

 

Keith is panting, leaning back against his pillow and willing the tears to stop. His body is trying to recuperate from all the tension and his throat burns from screaming. Beside him, Shiro is gripping him by the hand, repeating over and over how strong Keith is and what a great job he did.

 

Soon, another sound rings out and all the air exits Keith’s lungs when he hears his daughter crying. He sighs with relief, but Shiro remains frozen. Shiro mechanically reaches his arms out when his daughter is handed to him, but the second he tucks her little blanket away from her face, he dissolves into sobs.

 

“She’s beautiful, Keith.” Shiro cries and he scoots closer to Keith so that he can get a look at her.

 

Kira’s eyes are open, and large crocodile tears are welling up in the corner of her eyes as she whimpers. Keith deposits a kiss onto her tiny forehead.

 

Shiro kisses Keith’s cheek, damp locks of Keith’s hair tickling his face as he does so.

 

“Thank you. I love you.” Shiro whispers.

 

The door to Keith’s room creaks open, and Ryou is standing there in the doorway, though he gives Haru a pat on his shoulder and tells him to go first. Obediently, Haru walks over to his parents, fearfully silent.

 

Keith gestures to the spot next to him on his hospital bed. He then reaches over and plucks Kira from Shiro, pleasantly taking in the feeling of his daughter in his arms for the first time.

 

“C’mere, Haru. There’s someone who’s been waiting to meet you.”

 

Haru cozies up beside Keith and stares in pure amazement at the pink bundle he’s holding.

 

“Hi, Kira. Welcome to Earth. I bet you’ll like it here.” Haru says to his sister.

 

Shiro never exactly stopped crying from the moment Kira was handed to him, but seeing his son bond with her makes him start blubbering all over again. He sometimes finds himself so blissfully happy, so wrapped up in these halcyon days, that he half-wonders if he’s going to wake up in that prison cell and realize it was all a fabrication. But this is one of the things he fought for back then, and he’s going to continue enjoying his life with Keith and their children.

 

“Oh, by the way, babe?” Keith beckons.

 

“Yeah, Keith?” Shiro sniffles.

 

Keith draws his pointer finger against Shiro’s cheek, catching a tear as it slips down Shiro’s face. He then declares:

 

“I win.”


	2. Chapter 2

The sound of the baby wailing pierces the stillness of the room, and Shiro feels Keith tense up beside him. Keith starts to whimper in tandem with the baby, and Shiro wishes he could do something to alleviate Keith’s exhaustion. He rubs Keith’s back soothingly.

 

“I just want her to be happy, Takshi. She’s always crying.” Keith whines, his back still facing Shiro. 

 

Shiro frowns and sifts his metal hand through Keith’s long hair. He still isn’t completely used to sleeping with his prosthetic on, but he’s kept it attached for the past few weeks because of how often Kira wakes up.

 

“She is happy, Keith. She just has trouble sleeping, like her Papa.” Shiro offers, and he slips out of bed before Keith can even attempt to. 

 

Shiro realizes how drained he feels as he meanders his way toward Kira’s crib, almost shouldering his and Keith’s dresser thanks to his bleary eyesight. However, this is nothing in comparison to what Keith is undergoing, so Shiro pays it no mind. Furthermore, that sluggishness always seems to melt away when he feels his daughter cling to his nightshirt and curl against his chest when he picks her up. Tonight is no exception. 

 

“What’s the matter, sweetheart?” Shiro coos at her. He can tell even in the dark that she’s red faced from crying and she instinctively nuzzles her face into Shiro’s shoulder.

 

Shiro bounces lightly on his toes as he heads for the door, praying the motion will ease Kira. As he walks, he hears Keith dart up in bed. 

 

“You don’t have to take her out.” Keith says, and there’s an edge of desperation to it. One aspect of his recent state is being unable to tear himself away from the baby, hence Shiro’s suggestion that she sleep in their room with them. 

 

“Yes, I do. You need some sleep, babe.” Shiro says. 

 

“Yeah, but…”

 

“We’ll be right back.” 

 

Shiro closes the door behind him, tiptoeing down the hall as Kira still fusses and wriggles in his hold. 

 

“It’s alright, Kira. Papa’s got you.” 

 

Shiro is half-blinded by a ribbon of moonlight streaming in through the kitchen window. He was going to try feeding her, but Kira’s since calmed down during their shuffle downstairs. She inclines her head up toward Shiro, who smiles at her. 

 

“Bad dream again, huh? I know how that goes.” He says to her, brushing his thumb down the small trail of dried tears on her face. 

 

He contains her tiny frame in both hands, holding her away from him modestly so he can look at her head on. Despite the minimal illumination, he can see his daughter’s gray eyes—the same as his own—staring right back at him. It’s one of the most mystifying yet worthwhile things about becoming a father: being reflected in his own eyes. 

 

“You’ll be able to sleep through the whole night soon, kiddo. I know it. You’re Keith’s baby, and Keith isn’t afraid of anything.” He says it with utmost sincerity, but there’s an underlying layer of irony in that Kira looks nothing at all like she’s Keith’s baby. Shiro feels pretty guilty about the whole thing; poor Keith went through the process of giving them two kids, neither of which look like him. Haru’s started to develop Keith’s lankiness but otherwise, he’s every bit Shiro as Kira is. Shiro can hear Keith’s irritated grumbling of: “Goddamn Shirogane genes…” as he dwells on it. 

 

Shiro draws his daughter to him again, kissing her plump cheek. 

 

“Since you don’t seem hungry, let’s try this sleeping thing again, huh?” He says. 

 

As he climbs the stairs, propping Kira against him with one arm, he gasps when he sees Haru emerge from his room. 

 

“Haru, what are you doing up?” He asks quietly. 

 

“Heard her crying.” Haru states, rubbing tiredly at his eyes. He’s been unbelievably proactive since they’ve brought the baby home, jumping at many chances to hold her or to help her stop crying. Shiro has a text saved from Keith telling him that he asked Haru why he wanted to help with the baby so much and Haru replied that it’s his first baby so why shouldn’t he. 

 

“She’s okay now, buddy. Go back to bed.” Shiro says assuringly. 

 

Haru shakes his head and says, “I have something for her.” 

 

“Something for her that can’t wait until morning?”

 

“It’s to help her sleep better!” 

 

The door to Shiro and Keith’s room creaks open, and Shiro sighs when he sees Keith. He was really hoping to buy him some time to rest. Keith looks sporadically between Shiro and Haru, and Shiro already knows what he wants. 

 

Keith murmurs, “I’m sorry, I just…” 

 

Shiro wordlessly holds Kira out for Keith to take, and Keith grasps at her, gentle but needy. Although Keith looks like he’s almost at the point of collapsing, it’s still heartwarming to observe the way he clasps their daughter to him and cards a hand through the little patch of black hair on her head. 

 

“As much as I like this little hallway party we’ve got going here, I think we all ought to go back to sleep.” Shiro says. 

 

“Not yet; Kira needs something.” Haru says. 

 

Keith exchanges a look with Shiro, who shrugs. 

 

“He says he has something to help Kira sleep.”

 

“That’d be a nice change. Can you bring it into our room, Haru?” Keith says, and Haru nods with fervor, retreating back into his room. Keith and Shiro do the same. 

 

Shiro expects Keith to place the baby back down in her crib, but he carries her with him into bed, nestling the bony knobs of his spine against Shiro’s front as he gets comfortable. Keith shifts Kira in his arms as he adjusts, and Shiro curls an arm around Keith’s side, both protectively and lovingly. 

 

Kira is looking around in the meanwhile, blinking up at her dads more and more slowly as sleep threatens to overtake her again. 

 

“She may keep us awake at all hours of the day, but she’s pretty cute if I do say so.” Keith says, tracing a finger down the length of Kira’s face. 

 

“We make cute kids.” Shiro agrees, and kisses the shell of Keith’s ear. 

 

“Speaking of…” Keith trails off as Haru enters, clutching what appears to be a stuffed animal. 

 

Haru climbs into bed alongside Keith and Shiro, although laboriously. Shiro keeps telling him that soon he’ll be tall enough that he won’t have to hoist himself up onto the mattress belly first anymore. 

 

Shiro can now make out what Haru brought in thanks to proximity: a tiny knitted lion, its fur red and its mane black. To someone who wouldn’t understand the sentimentality of it, it would appear as a rather crudely made doll, but Lance knitted it for Haru years ago when he was a baby. There wasn’t exactly an abundance of cotton or material that Lance could find on a spaceship of all places, but he insisted on doing it anyway. “For when he misses you guys while we’re all out on a mission,” he’d said. 

 

“Oh, Haru, that’s your lion.” Shiro knows for a fact that his voice cracks, but several emotions charge through him at that moment. He feels a twinge of pain at remembering how long its been since he’s seen Black, he feels a residual anxiety at remembering how often he had to leave his son not knowing when he’d come back, and he feels slightly airheaded for forgetting in the first place that Haru still had the doll. 

 

“I know; it’s for Kira to use.” Haru says. 

 

“Are you sure, buddy?” Keith asks, tilting his head at him. 

 

“Well she can’t keep it, but I wanna help her.” Haru says, and he offers the lion to Kira, who stares at it in confusion at first but soon accepts it. Her chubby hands wind around the lion and she makes a small squawk of approval as she takes in the feeling of it pressed against her. 

 

“She loves it,” Keith laughs, “thank you, Haru.” 

 

“You’re such a good big brother.” Shiro adds, and Haru beams at him. 

 

Keith yawns and shudders against Shiro. 

 

“I’m so tired.” Keith says. 

 

“Me too.” Haru says and he coils against Shiro’s side. 

 

“May as well make it a sleepover since we’re all here and I think we’re all too tired to move.” Shiro suggests. 

 

“Yeah!” Haru interjects. 

 

“I’m good with that.” Keith says. He slips out of Shiro’s hold so that he can lie flat on his back, resting the baby on his chest. Kira snuggles up instantly, her eyes lulling shut and Haru’s lion still in her grip. 

 

“At least until she wakes up again.” Shiro adds as Haru lies beside him. 

 

“She’ll sleep all night; she has a magic lion.” Haru mumbles groggily. 

 

“We wouldn’t know anything about that, would we, Keith?” Shiro asks, but the only response he receives is a light snore from Keith’s side of the bed.

**Author's Note:**

> A03 was really glitching my notes for whatever reason, so I deleted them from the first chapter. As I mentioned before, I never wrote Shiro and Keith interacting with their newborn(s) yet, so here's what I promised. Hopefully it lives up to expectations. Thanks again for the consistent support and love!


End file.
